Portable concrete batch plant



March 21, 1961 A. J. KAYSER 2,975,884

PORTABLE CONCRETE BATCH PLANT Filed Aug. 25, 1958 5 Sheets-Sheet 1 m IN VEN TOR. I410? fivraaw BY M March 21, 1961 A. J. KAYSER 2,975,884

PORTABLE CONCRETE BATCH PLANT Filed Aug. 25, 1958 3 Sheets-Sheet 2 IN VEN TOR. flu /v J Knrsze March 21, 1961 A. J. KAYSER PORTABLE CONCRETE BATCH PLANT 3 Sheets-Sheet 3 Filed Aug. 25, 1958 v Arrow/5r This invention relates to what is known as a concrete batcher, that is, a unit into which the proper quantities of the various ingredients for mixing a specific batch of concrete are placed and which can then be operated to deliver the entire batch of premeasured ingredients to a cement mixer vehicle which will intermix the batch with water to form a fluid concrete mixture as it travels to the point where the concrete is to be poured into the concrete forms.

The principal object of this invention is to provide a concrete batching unit with transport wheels, and an elevating delivery conveyor, combined with a towing attachment whereby the unit may be readily attached to a towing vehicle for transport and to so construct the towing attachment that the delivery conveyor and the transport wheels will be automatically lowered to the transport position when the unit is connected for transport and to provide a towing attachment which will also act to automatically lower the batching unit to the ground and simul taneously raise the delivery conveyor to the working or delivery position when the towing vehicle is-stopped and reversed so that the unit can be quickly and easily moved from job to job and instantly erected for use when and where desired.

Another object of the invention is to provide a highly efiicient concrete batching unit which will accurately indicate the weight of the various ingredients and which will efficiently and rapidly elevate the completed batch to a sufficiently high delivery point by means of a relatively short, steep angle conveyor so that the unit can be effectively placed and operated in positions of limited space.

Other objects and advantages reside in the detail construction of the invention, which is designed for simplicity, economy, and efiiciency. These will become more apparent from the following description.

In the following detailed description of the invention, reference is had to the accompanying drawing which forms a part hereof. Like numerals refer to like parts in all views of the drawing and throughout the description.

In the drawing:

Fig. 1 is a side view of the improved concrete batcher illustrating in solid line the working position of the unit and in broken line the transport position thereof;

Fig. 2 is a plan view of the improved batching unit, partially broken away, illustrating it as it would appear in the transport position;

Fig. 3 is a detail perspective view of a towing hitch employed on the improved batcher, illustrating it as it would appear in the working position;

Fig. 4 is an enlarged fragmentary cross section through an elevating conveyor employed on the batching unit, the section beink taken on the line 44, Fig. 1;

Fig. 5 is a cross section taken on the line 5-5, Fig. 1;

Fig. 6 is a rear end view of the batching unit as it would appear in the working position.

Briefly, the improved batching unit comprises a rectangular, funnel-shaped, batch hopper suspended through a scale mechanism from an open, rigid, wheeled strucyea Patented Mar. 21, 196i tural main frame and arranged to discharge its contained.

This invention is concerned chiefly with the means for mounting the hopper, the conveyor and the wheels on and from the structural main frame.

As illustrated, the main frame comprises four horizontal base frame members 10 joined together at their extremities to form a rigid, rectangular base frame. A corner post 11, preferably comprising two spaced-apart structural angles, is secured to and arises from the base frame members 10 at each corner of the base frame. The two forward corner posts 11 support a horizontal front cross beam 12 and the two rear corner posts 11 support a similar rear cross beam 13. Each cross beam is preferably formed from two spaced-apart structural channels and each projects at both of its extremities beyond the corner posts in overhanging relation as shown in Fig. 6.

Suitable upper bracing gusset plates 14 are positioned between and welded to the spaced-apart members forming the posts '11 and the cross beams 12 and 13 and similar lower bracing gusset plates 15 are welded between the base members 10 and the corner posts 11 to form a rigid rectangular structural frame.

A pair of spaced-apart, longitudinally extending, channel side beams 16 extend between and are supported by the projecting extremities of the cross beams 12 and 13 at each side of the frame to complete the rigid main supporting frame.

The batch hopper comprises a rectangular, verticalwalled, upper portion 17 and an inclined-walled, in verted-pyramidal portion 18 terminating at its bottom in a rectangular discharge throat 19 provided with a conventional sliding discharge door 20.

The batch hopper is suspended from rotatable torque tubes 21, there being one torque tube 21 positioned at each side of the hopper below the side beam 16 at that side. Each torque tube is provided with two parallel, spaced-apart lever arms 22 which extend inwardly toward the hopper. A pair of bracket boxes 23 are welded to and extend outwardly from each side of the hopper, each box 23 being positioned to receive one of the lever arms 22. Each box is pivotally suspended from its contained lever arm 22 upon a relatively short hanger rod 24 which is pivoted to the extremity of the lever arm and clamped to the bottom of the box by means of suitable clamping nuts. The lever arms 22 are pivotally suspended from the side beams 16 upon relatively long hanger rods 25 which are pivoted at their lower extremities to the lever arms at a point between the short hanger rods 24 and the torque tubes 21. The long hanger rods 25 extend upwardly between the channel members forming the side beams 16 and are supported thereon from supporting nuts 26 threaded on the rods.

A scale-actuating lever 27 is welded or otherwise secured to the rear extremity of each torque tube 21 and these levers extend inwardly toward each other below the rear cross frame beam 13 terminating in aligned and closely spaced relation. An unbalanced tilting lever 28 is tiltably suspended beneath the latter cross frame beam 13 upon a suitable hanger 25. An inverted T-shaped hanger St is suspended from one extremity of the tilting lever 28 and extends downwardly between the aligned and spaced extremities of the scale-actuating levers 27 to support the latter. Upward movement of the other extremity of the tilting lever 28 is resisted by a connecting rod 31 which transmits the tension to a conventional table scale mechanism 32 and from thence to the indieating hand of a standard scale dial 33 mounted on scale table beams 34 extending between the rear corner posts 11.

Thus, it can be seen that as the concrete ingredients are added to the hopper, the weight thereof will be instantly indicated upon the scale dial 33. When the, desired weights of each ingredient has been added the entire batch can be discharged by opening the slide door 20.

A rear conveyor roller shaft 35 is rotatably mounted in suitable bearings 36 in a roller frame 37 supported from and between the side base frame members below the discharge throat 19. The shaft 35 is arranged to be driven, through any conventional power transmission mechanism 38, from an engine 39 which is also mounted in and supported from the base frame members 10.

An elongated conveyor frame 40 is pivotally mounted at its rear extremity on the rear conveyor roller shaft 35 and extends forwardly therefrom to support at its forward extremity a forward conveyor roller shaft 41. A rear conveyor roller 42. is fixed upon the rear conveyor roller shaft 35 and a front conveyor roller 43 is fixed upon the forward conveyor roller shaft 41. An endless conveyor belt 44 is trained about the conveyor rollers 42 and 43, the upper reach of the belt being supported upon suitable idler rollers 45 journalled along the conveyor frame 40.

The conveyor belt 44 is provided with a plurality of H-shaped flights 46 each flight having a transversally extending portion which is secured to the belt 44 provided with forwardly extending end flaps which overlap the ends of the preceding flight to produce a continuous series of box-like pockets on the upper side of the belt, for carrying the batch upwardly and forwardly to a terminal boot 47 which delivers the batch to the mixer. The flights 46 are more fully described and illustrated in applicants copending application, Serial No. 649,409, now abandoned.

One of the principal features of this invention relates to the means for supporting the conveyor frame 40 and its belt 44. The rear extremity of the conveyor frame is pivotally supported upon the rear roller shaft 35. The forward extremity is supported upon two brace legs 48, there being one of the legs 48 mounted in each extremity of a pivot tube 49 which extends laterally across and above the conveyor belt 44. The pivot tube 49 is welded to and extends between two upstanding side brackets 50 which are secured to the opposite sides of the conveyor frame 40 at a point substantially two-thirds of the conveyor length from the pivot point of the latter.

The brace legs 48 extend forwardly in parallel relation to a joining cross tube 51 thence inwardly toward each other terminating in a transversally extending sleeve tube 52 and a parallelly positioned bearing tube 53 which are rigidly secured thereto.

A suporting leg 54 is pivotally mounted on the extremities of the bearing tube 53 and the leg 54 can be locked in a position to support the brace legs 48 by means of a latching bolt 55 passing through the sleeve tube 52 as shown in Fig. 3. A longitudinally-extending hitch plate 56 is welded between the sleeve tube 52 and the cross tube 51 and a trailer hitch yoke 57 is slidably mounted on the hitch plate 56 so that it can be adjusted vertically by means of an adjusting screw 58, to conform to the height of the hitch or draw bar on the towing vehicle.

A pair of stabilizing arms 59 are pivotally mounted adjacent their lower extremities in the extremities of a second pivot tube 60 which is welded to and extends between the sidebrackets 50 parallel to and rearwardly of the first pivot tube 49. The lower extremities of the stabilizing arms 59 are connected to the brace legs 48, adjacent the upper extremities of the latter, by means of connecting links 61 so that the legs 43 and the arms 59 will pivot in unison but at different angular velocities.

A stabilizing frame 62 is pivotally mounted at its bottom upon hinge pins 63 carried in hinge brackets 64,

A wheel axle 66 is secured to and beneath the conveyor frame 40 adjacent the rear roller shaft 35 and extends oppositely outward therefrom braced by suitable axle braces 67 welded to both the axle and the conveyor frame and extending oppositely outward from the latter. The extremities of the wheel axle extend outwardly beyond the sides of the base frame members 19 and a pneumatically-tired trailer wheel 63 is rotatably mounted on each extremity of the axle.

Let us assume that it is desired to move the batching unit from the location of Fig. 1 to a new working position. A towing tractor or truck is backed up to the supporting leg 54 so that the truck hitch plate passes beneath the bearing tube 53 and the sleeve tube 52. The trailer hitch adjusting screw 58 is now rotated to force the trailer hitch yoke downwardly against the truck hitch plate to take the load 01f the brace legs 48 to allow the supporting leg 54 to be swung rearwardly to bring the weight onto the truck hitch plate. The tow truck is now moved forwardly to swing the brace legs 48 forwardly to cause the forward extremity of the conveyor frame 40 to descend about the axis of the rear roller shaft 35. As

.the forward extremity of the conveyor frame descends,

the rear extremity thereof will move upwardly using the wheels 68 as a fulcrum. This will cause the rear roller shaft 35 to be pried upwardly so that it will asume the weight of the entire unit and elevate the latter above the ground as indicated in broken line in Fig. 1.

Since the entire unit is pivotally mounted on the rear roller shaft 35, when the latter is elevated by the lowering movement of the conveyor, the unit would tend to tilt forwardly or rearwardly as it arises unless means were provided to maintain the base frame horizontal as the unit moves upwardly and downwardly between the workmg and transport positions. This is accomplished in the embodiment illustrated by means of the stabilizing frame 62, the stabilizing arms 59, and the connecting links 61. The various lever arms in the latter elements are so calculated that they act to cause the axis of the hinge pins 63 to travel vertically during the up and down movement of the conveyor frame so that the main frame cannot tilt forward and back at any time. For instance, when in the fully raised transport position, the stabilizing arms 59 are rigidly held in the broken line position of Fig. l and the stabilizing frame 62. rigidly braces the main frame from these rigid arms to maintain the horizontal transport position.

The trailer hitch yoke 57 can now be connected with the trailer hitch of the tow car and the entire unit can be readily towed to the next working location. At the next location, it is only necessary to spot the unit then back up the tow car to cause the brace legs to simultaneously elevate the conveyor frame and lower the main frame to the ground. The brace leg 54 is then swung downwardly and the weight of the brace legs 48 is transferred to the brace leg 54 by rotating the screw 58. The tow car is then driven out of the way and the unit is ready for use.

To prevent damage to the scale mechanism during transportation, four angle clips 69 are welded to the sides of the vertical portion of the hopper, there being one clip adjacent each corner of the hopper positioned immediately below the channel side beams 16. A threaded bolt nut is welded to each clip. During transportation, a clamping bolt is extended downwardly between the channels of the beams 16, as indicated in broken line While a specific form of the improvement has been described and illustrated herein, it is to be understood that the same may be varied within the scope of the appended claims, without departing from the spirit of the invention.

Having thus described the invention, what is claimed and desired secured by Letters Patent is: i

1. A concrete batching unit comprising: a main supporting frame; a hopper mounted in said frame; a horizontal shaft rotatably mounted in the bottom of said supporting frame below said hopper; a conveyor frame pivotally mounted at its rear extremity on said shaft and extending forwardly therefrom; ground-engaging wheels mounted on said conveyor frame forwardly from said shaft and below said conveyor frame so that said wheels will act as a fulcrum so that downward movement of said conveyor frame will extend said wheels below the bottom of said supporting frame and upon contact of said wheels with the ground will elevate said shaft and thereby elevate said supporting frame; a conveyor mounted in said conveyor frame; and means for driving said conveyor. 4

2. A concrete batching unit as described in claim 1 having means pivotally connected with said conveyor frame for elevating and lowering said conveyor frame about the axis of said shaft.

3. A concrete batching unit as described in claim 2 having means for resisting tilting of said supporting frame about the axis of said shaft as said supporting frame is elevated.

4. A concrete batching unit as described in claim 1 having a brace leg pivoted at one extremity to said conveyor frame so that the other extremity thereof may be swung toward the pivoted extremity of said conveyor frame to elevate and support said conveyor frame.

5. A concrete batching unit as described in claim 4 having means for hitching the forward extremity of said brace leg to a tow car for towing the entire unit by means of said brace leg.

6. A concrete batching unit as described in claim 1 having a brace leg at each side of said conveyor frame, each leg being pivotally mounted at its rear extremity to said conveyor frame; means joining said legs at their forward extremities; and a towing hitch carried by said joining means.

7. A concrete batching unit as described in claim 6 having a stabilizing frame hingedly mounted on said main supporting frame; and stabilizing arms pivoted to and extending between said stabilizing frame and said conveyor frame for stabilizing said main supporting frame during its elevative movement.

8. A concrete batching unit as described in claim 7 having connecting links pivotally connected between said brace legs and said stabilizing arms, the connections of said links being so arranged that said brace legs and said stabilizing arms will pivot in unison on said conveyor frame.

9. A concrete batching unit comprising: a main supporting frame; a hopper mounted in said frame; a horizontal shaft rotatably mounted in said frame below said hopper; a conveyor frame pivotally mounted at its rear extremity on said shaft and extending forwardly therefrom; ground-engaging wheels mounted on said conveyor frame forwardly from said shaft and below said conveyor-frame so that said wheels will act as a fulcrum so that downward movement of said conveyor frame will extend said wheels below the bottom of said supporting frame and upon contact of said wheels with the ground will elevate said shaft and thereby elevate said supporting frame; a lower conveyor roller mounted on said shaft; an upper conveyor roller mounted at the forward extremity of said conveyor frame; an endless con veyor belt trained about both of said rollers; a plurality of parallel, spaced-apart flights secured to salt belt; terminal portions on each flight extending forwardly to a position at each end of the preceding flight; and means carried by said main frame for driving said lower conveyor roller to impart travel to said belt.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,759,885 Bousfield May 27, 1930 2,144,360 Buckbee Ian. 17, 1939 2,279,678 Hem Apr. 14, 1942 2,510,212 Donnell June 6, 1950 2,619,219 Carroll et al Nov. 25, 1952 2,630,905 Howe Mar. 10, 1953 2,896,770 Ross et al. July 28, 1959 

